Windows in South Dakota whistle because the wind never really lets up. Dust on the sill, a sash that no longer meets, and rain that entered at the head are the usual report. The windward elevation fails first. East river houses see that rain driven sideways in a thunderstorm. West river houses see grit in the tracks and frames that rack a little more every season until the latch is doing all the work.
Older town windows are often wood in a wall that has moved. Newer houses on open lots are often vinyl with a flange that was never detailed for a sideways rain. Insert work leaves the old frame. Full-frame work opens the rough hole. If the wood is soft or the frame is out of square, leaving it is how the whistle returns. If the frame is sound, tearing it out is extra damage to a wall the wind is already testing.
Ask how the sill sheds water and what fills the gap around a new unit. A glass package set on a rotten sill is a short story. So is a unit that looks tight on a calm morning and leaks when the gust stacks on that wall. Storm panels and tired weatherstrip are repairs when the glass is intact. A meeting rail that misses and a frame you can see daylight through are not a tube of sealant.
Do not replace every opening because the north wall howls. Count the units that whistle, fog, or stain the trim below them. The lee side of the house is a comparison. If a claim is open, photograph the windward elevation and the water stains before the trim is painted. The policy conversation and the window conversation stay cleaner when you know which wall faced the gust.
Say how many openings, which rooms, and whether the frames are soft. Name the town and whether the complaint is a whistle, a leak, or glass that failed. Have the deductible nearby if the policy is part of this. The wind will be back before the caulk cures in your imagination. Call the number on this page.